Ownership of the late Albert Gubay’s former home has been the subject of a high court case.

Deemster Christie QC was asked to establish if Crogga Mill in Santon falls within the deceased’s estate and, if not, who owns the property.

The claim was brought by the executors of the Albert Gubay’s estate. It was not contested by Mrs Gubay’s widow Carmel or trustees of the Albert Gubay Charitable Foundation.

Crogga Mill estate, including the cottage, mill and mill dam, were acquired by Mr Gubay in 1985.

By trust deed, Mr Gubay declared he held the property on trust for Fairport Limited.

But the court heard that matters started to go wrong with a further trust deed dated August 1989.

This stated that Fairport had created a new dwelling and agreed to sell it to the Gubays for £712,194. It also stated it held the house in trust for the beneficiaries as joint tenants.

The problem was that Fairport was not the legal owner of the property and so could not agree to sell it to the Gubays - and nor could it properly declare it held the house on trust for the beneficiaries because it had no legal title.

In fact, it was Mr Gubay who continued to hold the legal title in sole name and hold it on trust for Fairport.

Matters were confused yet further in 2015 when by a deed of conveyance, the property was purported to be transferred to the AGF Trustee Limited.

The claimants said the deceased did not intend to transfer the property at all but only a strip of land adjoining it known as The Chantry, on which Mr Gubay and his family members intended that they should be buried.

In a judgment, Deemster Christie ruled there was a fundamental mistake with the 2015 conveyance and he was entirely satisfied that the intention had been to transfer title only to The Chantry.

He set aside the 2015 conveyance and made an order that Crogga Mill falls within the late Mr Gubay’s estate.